1. (There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me – Sandie Shaw – Unlike the original, this one sounds very youthful. There isn’t the harsh of experience to Shaw’s vocal, instead it has a swinging England vibe not at edge but in distinction to Davids intense feelings. I coulda sworn Dionne did the original but she sang the demo. Sandie brings a generational schism to the 60s masterwork – Grade:A
2. Gully Low Blues – Louis Armstrong – Bracketed by trumpet solo and veering from black to be blue, debatably Armstrong’s masterpiece, with a line I use all dy every day on this website: “if you listen to me I’ll tell you something I don’t know.” – Grade: A+
3. In My Life – The Beatles – 24 years old, or something equally ridiculously young, when he wrote it, Lennon’s presentiment of time and love and lost. And George Martins middle eight – Grade: A+
4. The Longest Time – Billy Joel – Both Billy and I took our chances – Grade: A+
5. Homeward Bound – Simon And Garfunkel – This is to the late evening what John Denver’s “Leaving On A Jet Plane” is to the early morning: a deep, deep homesickness – Grade: A+
6. Opportunity – Elvis Costello – I used to think he was singing “I wanna be a funeral director”, which tells you more about my state of mind than you really wanna know – Grade: A
7.The What – Notorious B.I.G. And Method Man – Fuck the world don’t ask them for shit, everything they got they had to work haaaaaard for it – Grade: A+
8. Caravan – Van Morrison – The first novel I ever wrote had this playing in the background – Grade: A+
9. Goodbye England – This song reminds me of John Fowles superb novel “Daniel Martin” – Grade: A+
10. The Positive Touch – The Undertones – Off one of the greatest albums you never herd – Grade: A+